


Misty Morning

by monkiainen



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, Bullying, Gen, Implied/Referenced Suicide
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-06
Updated: 2018-05-06
Packaged: 2019-05-03 00:44:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,039
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14557173
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/monkiainen/pseuds/monkiainen
Summary: Remus only wants to be friends with Severus, but the universe thinks otherwise.





	Misty Morning

It's not easy to be a child and a wizard, all at once. It's harder to realise that the person you think is your best friend is Sorted to the House that is the rival of yours. And what makes it all so much harder are your housemates telling you that you can't be friends with someone because of their House and you should just forget about them.

Remus was never really good at doing what people told him to do. 

That attitude had got him in trouble before, and would undoubtedly do so in the future as well. Remus didn't really care, because with Severus everything felt so _easy_. It had taken the quiet Slytherin only two months to figure out what Remus truly was, and instead of rejection Remus was fearing he had nothing but acceptance. Severus knew Remus was not just a beast, but a person with name and feelings. Apart from his parents no one had every told Remus those words, and they were more precious than all the Galleons in the Gringotts.

In turn Remus taught Severus everything he knew about defending himself, of using his small frame to his advantage. Maybe that way Severus would stop hurting because of his bastard father.

They spend countless hours in the library together, studying and talking and laughing and just enjoying each other's company. After all, the library was the first place they actually met – The Sorting Feast didn't count, as everyone was too busy to wonder what the hell they were doing in a place like Hogwarts and worrying how they would get along with their Housemates. Remus had wanted a moment of solitude from James Potter and Sirius Black – the brash Gryffindor duo meant well, but they were too _loud_ and _rude_ for Remus's tastes. Remus had been taught from an early age that appearance didn't mean everything – to really know what the person was like one had to made an effort to get to know them from inside out. Prejudices were dangerous things. Heck, if his parents had listened and believed all the stigmas surrounding werewolves Remus wouldn't be at Hogwarts getting a magical training, far from it. He would be either in some sort of Ministry-regulated "safe house" _(which was just a code word for magical research laboratories)_ or dead. Good thing his parents were sensible people.

In the furthest corner of the library was a small, secluded table with two battered chairs around it. That was all what Remus needed – he was not after anything fancy, but just a place he could call his own. After the classes Remus would often sneak there, shaking off the inseparable duo and finding comfort in the quietness of the library. One night, though, he wasn't the only one in the small little corner – a boy of his age, small and delicate with inky black hair, was already sitting there.

Remus remembered the other boy from the train – he had seemed to know the red-headed girl, Lily, quite well. That hadn't sat well with James and Sirius for some reason, and they had taunted the boy because of his small frame and patched clothes. _"I think that runt is going to be Slytherin, all the ugly wizards are"_ , Sirius had mocked the other boy ruthlessly. Remus wanted to stop the bullying, but before he could open his mouth the dark-haired boy, Severus, had jinxed both James and Sirius faster than they could say "cat". Lily had whooped in joy, congratulating Severus on his fast thinking. But Remus saw the expressions on James and Sirius's faces when they were leaving, and it only meant trouble for Severus.

Remus was pondering whether or not Severus would be amenable to have some company, when a wafting paper aeroplane poked him to the chest.

That settled it, and since that moment the two boys were practically inseparable. Whenever they had the chance, they would sneak out to the library, making sure no one saw where they were going. Both Gryffindors and Slytherins were against their friendship, because of some outdated prejudices and rivalries.

Soon it got out of hand. James, Sirius, and a small mousy boy called Peter soon targeted Severus out of pure spite. Their only reason for tormenting Severus was that he was a Slytherin, and very good at hexes and jinxes. "He will be a dark wizard, no question about that!" exclaimed Sirius – which was a bit thick coming from him, seeing that his whole family had been in Slytherin and they were something you could call dark wizards. Remus had his share of pranks as well, although not as much – maybe it was some sort of twisted house camaraderie, but for some reason the three Marauders _(whoever gave them that nickname was out of their mind)_ were hesitant to hurt Remus as much as they did Severus.

There were detentions, points were loss – heck, even McGonagall implied to Remus it would be better if he chose friends from his _own_ House. But Remus didn't want to be friends with any of the Gryffindor boys from his year. They were rude, immature and stupid, and Remus had no intention to make friends with such persons. He wanted his friends to be considerate, smart and compassionate – all of those qualities neither James or Sirius seemed to possess.

And then it all ended so bitterly.

After the Christmas holidays Severus told Remus it would be better for everyone if they weren't friends anymore. It was just… it would be better. And if Severus was teary-eyed and his lip was quivering, well, Remus was nice enough not to mention it. He had a feeling the decision might not entirely be Severus's own, but he was respecting his friends' wishes. Even if it broke both of their hearts, just a little.

And nothing changed. James and Sirius were still being an ass towards Severus, even more so now that Remus wasn't there to interfere things. More often than not Severus spent the night in infirmary, and not all his injuries were made by magic. Perhaps then it was no wonder Severus made the decision to overdose on the Dreamless Sleep, never waking up again.

Remus was never the same again.


End file.
